BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES |
3 Months Ended |
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Mar. 31, 2021 | |
| BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES | |
| BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES |
NOTE 1: BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES
Whole Earth Brands, Inc. and its consolidated subsidiaries (“Whole Earth Brands” or the “Company”) is a global industry-leading platform, focused on the “better for you” consumer packaged goods (“CPG”) and ingredients space. The Company has a global platform of branded products and ingredients, focused on the consumer transition towards natural alternatives and clean label products.
On June 24, 2020, Act II Global Acquisition Corp., a Cayman Islands exempted company (“Act II”), domesticated into a Delaware corporation (the “Domestication”), and on June 25, 2020 (the “Closing”), consummated the indirect acquisition (the “Business Combination”) of (i) all of the issued and outstanding equity interests of Merisant Company (“Merisant”), Merisant Luxembourg Sarl (“Merisant Luxembourg”), Mafco Worldwide LLC (“Mafco Worldwide”), Mafco Shanghai LLC (“Mafco Shanghai”), EVD Holdings LLC (“EVD Holdings”), and Mafco Deutschland GmbH (together with Merisant, Merisant Luxembourg, Mafco Worldwide, Mafco Shanghai, and EVD Holdings, and their respective direct and indirect subsidiaries, “Merisant and Mafco Worldwide”), and (ii) certain assets and liabilities of Merisant and Mafco Worldwide included in the Transferred Assets and Liabilities (as defined in the Purchase Agreement (as hereafter defined)), from Flavors Holdings Inc. (“Flavors Holdings”), MW Holdings I LLC (“MW Holdings I”), MW Holdings III LLC (“MW Holdings III”), and Mafco Foreign Holdings, Inc. (“Mafco Foreign Holdings,” and together with Flavors Holdings, MW Holdings I, and MW Holdings III, the “Sellers”), pursuant to that certain Purchase Agreement (the “Purchase Agreement”) entered into by and among Act II and the Sellers dated as of December 19, 2019, as amended. In connection with the Domestication, Act II changed its name to “Whole Earth Brands, Inc.”
Upon the completion of the Domestication, each of Act II’s then-issued and outstanding ordinary shares converted, on a one-for-one basis, into shares of common stock of Whole Earth Brands. In conjunction with the Business Combination, the Company issued an aggregate of 7,500,000 shares of Whole Earth Brands common stock and 5,263,500 private placement warrants (the “Private Warrants”) exercisable for 2,631,750 shares of Whole Earth Brands common stock to certain investors. On the date of Closing, the Company’s common stock and warrants began trading on The Nasdaq Stock Market under the symbols “FREE” and “FREEW,” respectively.
As a result of the Business Combination, for accounting purposes, Act II was deemed to be the acquirer and Mafco Worldwide and Merisant Company were deemed to be the acquired parties and, collectively, the accounting predecessor. The Company’s financial statement presentation includes the combined financial statements of Mafco Worldwide and Merisant Company as the “Predecessor” for periods prior to the completion of the Business Combination and includes Whole Earth Brands, Inc. and its subsidiaries for periods after the Closing (referred to as the “Successor”).
Basis of Presentation—The accompanying unaudited consolidated and combined interim financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“U.S. GAAP”) for interim financial reporting. The balance sheet data as of December 31, 2020 was derived from the audited consolidated financial statements. These unaudited condensed consolidated and combined interim financial statements should be read in conjunction with the Company’s audited consolidated and combined financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2020 included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K.
In the opinion of management, the financial statements contain all adjustments necessary to state fairly the financial position of the Company as of March 31, 2021 and the results of operations and cash flows for all periods presented. All adjustments reflected in the accompanying unaudited consolidated and combined financial statements, which management believes are necessary to state fairly the financial position, results of operations and cash flows, have been reflected and are of a normal recurring nature. Results of operations for interim periods are not necessarily indicative of results to be expected for the full year. Certain prior year amounts have been reclassified to conform to the current year presentation.
Principles of Consolidation—The consolidated and combined financial statements include the accounts of Whole Earth Brands, Inc., and its indirect and wholly owned subsidiaries. All significant intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation.
Use of Estimates—The preparation of financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported in the unaudited consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes. Actual results could differ from these estimates.
Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements—The Company qualifies as an emerging growth company (an “EGC”) and as such, has elected the extended transition period for complying with certain new or revised accounting pronouncements. During the extended transition period, the Company is not subject to certain new or revised accounting standards applicable to public companies. The accounting pronouncements pending adoption below reflect effective dates for the Company as an EGC with the extended transition period.
In March 2017, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) 2017-7, “Compensation - Retirement Benefits (Topic 715).” Under the new guidance, employers are required to present the service cost component of net periodic benefit cost in the same statement of operations caption as other employee compensation costs arising from services rendered during the period. Employers are required to present the other components of the net periodic benefit cost separately from the caption that includes the service costs and outside of any subtotal of operating profit and are required to disclose the caption used to present the other components of net periodic benefit cost, if not presented separately on the statement of operations. The Company adopted ASU 2017-7 effective in the second quarter of 2020. The adoption of this standard did not have an effect on the Company’s historically reported net income (loss) but resulted in a presentation reclassification which increased the Company’s historically reported operating profit by $0.1 million for the three months ended March 31, 2020.
New Accounting Standards—In March 2020, the FASB issued ASU 2020-4, “Reference Rate Reform (Topic 848): Facilitation of the Effects of Reference Rate Reform on Financial Reporting.” Subject to meeting certain criteria, the new guidance provides optional expedients and exceptions to applying contract modification accounting under existing U.S. GAAP, to address the expected phase out of the London Inter-bank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”) by the end of 2021. The amendments in ASU 2020-4 apply only to contracts, hedging relationships, and other transactions that reference LIBOR or another reference rate expected to be discontinued because of reference rate reform. The new standard was effective upon issuance and generally can be applied to applicable contract modifications through December 31, 2022. The Company is currently evaluating the impact of adopting this standard but does not expect it to have a material impact on its consolidated financial statements.
In December 2019, the FASB issued ASU 2019-12, “Income Taxes (ASC 740) - Simplifying the Accounting for Income Taxes.” The standard enhances and simplifies various aspects of the income tax accounting guidance. For public entities, the standard is effective for annual periods and interim periods beginning after December 15, 2020. This standard is effective for the Company as an EGC for the fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2021. Early adoption is permitted. The Company is currently evaluating the impact of adopting ASU 2019-12 on its consolidated financial statements.
In August 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-14, “Compensation - Retirement Benefits - Defined Benefit Plans - General (Subtopic 715-20).” The standard modifies certain disclosure requirements for employers that sponsor defined benefit pension and other postretirement benefit plans by removing disclosures that are no longer considered cost beneficial, clarifying specific requirements of disclosures, and adding disclosure requirements identified as relevant. This standard is effective for the Company as an EGC for the fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2021. Early adoption is permitted. The amendments in ASU 2018-14 should be applied retrospectively to each period presented. The Company is currently evaluating the impact of adopting ASU 2018-14 on its consolidated financial statements.
In June 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-13, “Financial Instruments - Credit Losses (Topic 326).” The standard requires entities to estimate losses on financial assets measured at amortized cost, including trade receivables, debt securities and loans, using an expected credit loss model. The expected credit loss differs from the previous incurred losses model primarily in that the loss recognition threshold of “probable” has been eliminated and that expected loss should consider reasonable and supportable forecasts in addition to the previously considered past events and current conditions. Additionally, the guidance requires additional disclosures related to the further disaggregation of information related to the credit quality of financial assets by year of the asset’s origination for as many as five years. Entities must apply the standard provision as a cumulative-effect adjustment to retained earnings as of the beginning of the first reporting period in which the guidance is effective. This standard is effective for the Company as an EGC for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2022 including interim periods within those fiscal years. The Company is currently evaluating the impact of adopting ASU 2016-13 on its consolidated financial statements.
Restructuring and Employee Termination Benefits—During 2020, the Company adopted restructuring plans to streamline processes and realize cost savings by consolidating facilities and eliminating various positions in operations and general and administrative areas.
In connection with the restructuring plans, the Company recognized facility exit and other related costs of $1.7 million in the three months ended March 31, 2021. Additionally, at both March 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020 the Company has accrued severance expense related to the restructuring plans of $1.0 million, which is recorded in accrued expenses and other current liabilities in the unaudited condensed consolidated balance sheets.
Warrant Liabilities—The Company accounts for the Private Warrants in accordance with Accounting Standards Codification “ASC” Topic 815, “Derivatives and Hedging”. Under the guidance contained in ASC Topic 815-40, the Private Warrants do not meet the criteria for equity treatment and must be recorded as liabilities. Accordingly, the Company classifies the Private Warrants as liabilities at their fair value and adjusts the warrants to fair value at each reporting period. The liability is subject to re-measurement at each balance sheet date, and any change in fair value is recognized in the Company’s statement of operations. The Private Warrants are valued using a Black-Scholes option pricing model.
Based on the views expressed in the SEC’s Staff Statement of April 12, 2021 in which the SEC staff clarified its interpretations of certain generally accepted accounting principles related to certain terms common in warrants issued by Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (“SPACs”), the Company determined that the Private Warrants should be treated as derivative liabilities rather than as components of equity, as previously presented. Accordingly, the Company recorded out of period adjustments to the unaudited Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheet at January 1, 2021 to reclassify warrant liabilities of $8.1 million and transaction costs incurred by Act II of $1.1 million related to the issuance of the Private Warrants. Additionally, during the three months ended March 31, 2021, the Company recognized the cumulative effect of the error on prior periods by recording a $1.2 million gain in the Statement of Operations to reflect the cumulative decrease in the fair value of the Private Warrants from the date of issuance through December 31, 2020. The Company has concluded that this misstatement is not material to the current period or the previously filed financial statements. See Note 7 and Note 8.
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